India settlement and market infrastructure
India routes money and securities through distinct infrastructure. RTGS / NEFT and NPCI sit inside the RBI payment perimeter; depositories sit inside the SEBI securities stack; e₹-W remains a pilot settlement layer.
Settlement map
Infrastructure overview
Onshore bank-money outcomes route through RTGS and NEFT in the RBI system, while retail payment interfaces rely on operator rails such as NPCI and UPI within the RBI payment-system perimeter. Those rails determine how lawful INR movement actually settles once the bank leg is open.
Securities routes still rely on depository / demat infrastructure under the Depositories Act, DP Regulations, and Custodian Regulations. Token discussions do not displace that substrate unless and until a different public framework is opened.
The e₹ FAQ now identifies three current wholesale pilot use cases: settlement of secondary market government securities, inter-bank call money settlement, and tokenised issuance and settlement of certificate of deposits. That is a pilot settlement fact, not a general public authorisation for private tokenised deposits.
Infrastructure matrix
| Infrastructure | Source | Route consequence |
|---|---|---|
| RTGS | RTGS FAQ. | Large-value final settlement in RBI books. |
| NEFT | NEFT FAQ. | Ordinary bank-account transfer rail. |
| NPCI systems | NPCI; UPI; RBI storage FAQ. | Retail acceptance and payment initiation remain inside RBI perimeter. |
| Depository / demat layer | Depositories Act; DP Regulations; Custodian Regulations. | Existing holding and settlement substrate for securities routes. |
| e₹-W pilot | e₹ FAQ. | Pilot wholesale settlement layer for listed RBI use cases only. |